File editing inside mounted encrypted vaults – one tiny fix away from becoming a game‑changer!

[EGGGOOSE]

Hi dear developer,

First of all, thank you for Zettel Notes. It's an amazing piece of software, and I genuinely think it has the potential to become the only Markdown editor on Android that truly respects both privacy and usability.

Let me explain why I'm writing this with such passion – and why this feature request is not just for me, but for many others.

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The problem I'm facing (and dozens of others)

I store all my personal notes, journals, passwords, and plans in an encrypted vault using gocryptfs.
On my PC, I mount the vault and use Obsidian for work with it.
On Android, I use DroidFS (which implements gocryptfs).

I sync my notes via Syncthing – only the encrypted files are synced between devices.
The vault is decrypted only when I need to work on a specific device. As soon as I'm done, everything is encrypted again.
This is true Encryption at Rest – even if someone steals my phone or laptop, they can't read a single word without my strong 20+ character password.

I work on a shared office computer sometimes, and colleagues could potentially access my files.
Leaving my notes unencrypted on that machine would be a nightmare.
With this setup, I can mount the vault, work, and dismount – leaving no readable traces.

Now, the challenge on Android: almost no Markdown app can open a whole folder inside a mounted virtual drive.

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What I've tried (and failed)

I tested more than a dozen apps, including:
Logseq, Simple Markdown, JotterPad, WriterP, BeautyTyXT, Markor, Epsilon Notes, Open Markdown Markdown Editor, Quillpad, Material Files, Joplin, Obsidian, and many others.

• None of them can open a whole folder inside a mounted vault.
• Many don't see mounted volumes at all (Obsidian is a perfect example – they refuse to support it).
• A few can open one file at a time via SAF and edit it successfully – but that's painful: no folder navigation, no links between notes, no search, no structure.

So the situation is:

• Simple editors = can edit single files, but can't work with folder structures.
• Complex apps (Obsidian, Logseq) = can manage folders, but cannot see mounted volumes at all.

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Then I found Zettel Notes – and it was a revelation

What already works (and it's 95% perfect):

• ✅ Open a whole folder inside a DroidFS‑mounted vault (via ACTION_OPEN_DOCUMENT_TREE).
• ✅ Display all notes, navigate subfolders, follow internal [[wiki links]].
• ✅ Create new files, delete, rename, move – all from within the mounted drive.
• ✅ Search across notes, tag navigation, Markdown preview – fantastic!

But one thing is missing – and it's the final step:
Editing existing files. When I open a file, make changes, and hit save – nothing happens. The changes are lost. No error message, just silent failure.

(For comparison, Material Files can edit files inside mounted vaults, but it's a general file manager, not a dedicated Markdown editor like Obsidian with wiki links, search, and folder navigation.)

I am attaching a video that clearly demonstrates the problem:
https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/2451e5c9-c276-4cee-8206-6ab92418f895

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Why this is critically important (not just a "nice to have")

• Privacy is not a niche anymore. More and more people use encrypted vaults (DroidFS, Cryptomator, EDS, etc.) – with Syncthing for P2P, or even with Dropbox/GitHub: the data stays encrypted, so you don't need to trust the cloud provider.
• Obsidian on Android is hopeless. Their team refuses to support mounted folders. Logseq has similar issues. They don't care about security – they store their own secrets in plain text, apparently. It's easy to steal their devices and read everything.
• The only realistic alternative is a third‑party app that does it right.
• You are so close. Zettel Notes already does 95% of the impossible. Fixing the save issue would make it the only Markdown app on the entire Play Store / F-Droid that can fully work with encrypted, folder‑based, multi‑device sync setups (Syncthing + gocryptfs + DroidFS).

If you add this, you will instantly attract everyone who has been struggling with Obsidian's security blind spot.
I've seen dozens of threads on Reddit, GitHub, and forums asking exactly for this:

"How can I use Obsidian / Logseq with encrypted sync on Android?"

And the typical answer from the Obsidian crowd is always a mix of 'nobody needs this', 'it's technically impossible', or 'it breaks the concept of plain markdown files' – even though dozens of real users have asked for it, and it would be trivial as an optional toggle.

You have the chance to prove them wrong.

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What I'm asking for (technically)

• Most simple text editors already do the right thing: when they open a single file, they request takePersistableUriPermission(uri, Intent.FLAG_GRANT_WRITE_URI_PERMISSION).
• Zettel Notes already requests a tree URI for the whole folder – but it doesn't request write permission for the files when editing them.

I believe the fix is relatively small:

1. When the user opens a file from a tree URI, call takePersistableUriPermission for that file's URI.
2. Or, even simpler: when the root folder is selected, request write permission for the whole tree once, so that all files inside become writable.

This would make Zettel Notes fully compatible with any virtual filesystem (DroidFS, Cryptomator, Solid Explorer's mount, etc.).

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What I'm willing to do to help

• Test thoroughly – I'll test any beta version on my real setup (DroidFS + Syncthing + gocryptfs + 1000+ notes).
• Promote – I will go back to every forum, Reddit thread, and GitHub issue where people complain about Obsidian + encryption, and show them Zettel Notes as the solution. I've already saved dozens of such links.
• Donate – I'm genuinely ready to donate as a thank you, because this tool would save me (and others) months of frustration.

I understand you might be busy, and I respect that.
But please consider that implementing this would give Zettel Notes a unique selling point that no competitor has. Not Obsidian. Not Logseq. Not any of the generic editors.

Thank you for reading this long message. I hope you share the vision.

With respect and hope, EGGGOOSE